Traction-belt.



DE WITT NELSON L H. C. STEELE.

TRACTION BELT.

APPLlcAloN meu MAR.6,\916. Y

llled Jan. Q8, 19W.

2 SHEETS-snail l.

2 /ff/ 4.2 6:5 @f F/JQ/ ZS 2f 512' 2ff I 5'5" iv 35 i@ www@ n T Tmmfg/.im i 512211@ Jim u 2. 9W. 69 WZ l 96Wn indo/vg@ 4 DE WITT NELSON LH. C. STEELE.

TRACTION BELT.

APPLICATION HLED MAR.6.19\6.

, Lyggm, Patented JM.. 23,1919.

Hw ff T l Si; m9 Q@ J/ g /U um D u f* U nfffm V mmm wlw M 7l/765565 '15/ /W /fe/v fons UNITED sTATns DE WITT NELSON AND HUGH C. STEELE, 0FlltINNblilS, 1,

T0 TOM THUIYIB TRACTOR COMPANY, OF MLNNEELIS, ,1"-

RATION.

TRAoTron-nnnr.

1,292, Tiel.,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application fired Marche, isle. semaine.

Be it known that We, DE lWITT NnLsoN and ilnon C. 'ricnii-n, citizens ofthe United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepinand State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and usefullmprovements in llractioirelts, of which the following is aspecification.

Our invention relates to traction belts for what are known as thecaterpillar type of tract-ion engines and has for its Object to providesuch a belt which shall be constructed of a plurality of plates orsla-ts so interconnected at their joints that such slats may pivot inone direction while in the other direct-ion the slats will be held rigidwith their outer surfaces in a given plane. The entire els is driven bysprocketvvheels having lug. engageable in apertures in the slats so thatthe slats not only are held together to hold the belt as a Whole, butsaid belt is driven without the employment. et any sprocket. chains,cables or similar devices.

The full objects and advantages of' our invention will appear in.connection with the detailed description thereof and are particularlypointed out in the claims.

lin the drawings. illustratingl the applicationoi1 our invention in oneform,

Figure 1 is a plan view of an out-stretched portion ot our improvedcaterpillar belt with some parts removed. Fig'. 2 lis a side elevationalview of the belt shown in Fig. 1, part oi which 'is shown to pass aboutone of the drive sprockets. Fig. 3 is an end elevational sectional viewof the tractor belt taken on line 33 of Fig. 1, including, some of thedrive sprockets 'not shown in that ligure. Fig. 4 is a plan view of aycaterpillar belt similar to that shown in Fig.. 1 but having additionalinterlocking members. Fig. 5 is a sectional elevational vienT of some ofthe ,parts shown in Fig. el taken on line 5-5 of they remain tangent tothem-at their centers 21 on sprocket Wheels locking,l blocks 23 and Asimilar to blocks e he ijlaits. thereof are reversed so that one set arewhat might be termed right-handed and the other set left-handed r'heseblocks are rigidly bolted to the thicker portions 17 ot said'slats bymeans oi bolts E25 and are guided in place and kept from rotating 'yridges 26 and E27 integral with the slats and `fitting into grooves 28and 29 in the edges of said blocks, ns best shown in lii. Power istransmitted through the belt by means shown in Figs. 1 and The htoelrs23 and 2l have hook portions 3U and at their ends issuing :trein parts3Q and 33 extending` from the centers ot" said blocks. it ivill be notedthat when the blocks are inv place and the beit slats assembled and lieliat,ras shown in Fig. 1, that the hook porn tions 30 and 31 are incontact at the surracesv 35, said surfaces extending substantiallyperpendicular-ly Jfrom the tops of the parts and 33 to the top or' thethieltened portion 17 03": the slats and in line with 1the edges 36 ofthe previeusly-inentioned sluts. Tension is hence transmittedthroughout. the belt through hooks 30 and 31 andcoinpression tl'iroughthe edges These edges may, however, be cut. away at 3'? to reduce se theactual contact surface, as shown in Fig'. 1. h

To allow the belt to bend, the extreme lower portion 3S of each of thehoch portions 30 and 3l is made Wedge shape and no the surfaces 39 andil@ are caused to roll together as the belt mounts the sprocket Wheel,changing the surface ot Contact irom'' to 35) and 40. Slate 1l. and 15in Fig. f5 are shown in this position. and shits 12 and 13 in the sainefigure are shown in the straightline position. ',lhe point oit pivot, orthe hinge line or the slats, is substantially the 'upper Corner of edge3G, coincident with the top surface oi? portion Where, it will be seen.,the taper of the wedge portion oo coininences. rl`he thickened portions11i' are cnt avvay at 41 and e2 'to give the wedgeeshaped extremities 38of the hooked portions 30 and 31 suihcient operningij space. To allowthe it* parts 32 and 355 to taire the Yoesitions shown by those attachedto slats in Fin'.

Q, ythelfsanie are cut away at i3 and 44, so that the various elementswill effectively operate to move from the straight-line position to thecurved position clearly illustrated in said figure. y

To prevent the slats from sliding apart transversely, or along theedges. 36 and suriaccs 35, each of the slats is provided at 17 on oneside with a protrusion and a recess lo, and at the other side ivith asimilar protrusion -17 and a similar recess 48, so situated that theprotrusion 45 of one slat fits into the recess 46 of the next, andsimilarly the piotrusion 47 oft one slat lits into the recess l-l oi thenext slat. These prot-rusions, as ivill be not-'edin Fig. l, as shown onslats l0 and ll, come in line with the parts 32 and 32% and, as bestshown-in F ig. 2, pass under the corners 49 and 50 formed by thecutaivay portions and 44 and the. main body ot' the parts 32 and 33. Asthese corners lie along the line ot' pivot of the hook members it willbe compi'ehended that they ride 0n the projections l5 and et? and soprevent the parts from disengaging. 4 To remove the belt elements it is,hence, necessary to first detach the interlocking blocks 2l, which iseasily done by means of bolts When a very long slat is used we find itnecessary to employ additional interlocking members, which may be formedand situated as shown in Fig. al. Here the ordinary slats 5l, 52, and 54are linked .together with the regular interlocking blocks 55, the saineas ivere shown in Fig, l. In addition to the saine, blocks 56 are castintegral with the slats 5l, 52, etc., and are provided with loopedportions 57 at one end and hooked portions 58 at the other end whichengage the respective parts of adjacent slats, as shown in F ig. y5.rlhe edges 59 of the slats are continued in proximity with theseadditional interlocking blocks so that the slats al' those points arealso given v'substantial conijn'ession-contact surfaces. In this casemeans are. omitted for retaining the mein- 'bers from transversesliding' so that the saine may be easily slipped in place and the blocks.''a' can hence be cast integral with the slats".

ihe advantages of ourii'nproved t'orin of l caterpillar belt lie mainlyin the simplicity ot operation and construction and the durability thewearing parts, and to this end the device provided.

We claim:

l, .A traction belt lf or caterpillar type traction enginps comprising aplurality ot separate plates positioned side by side, each plate havingan ear projecting into the edge or the adjacent plate, and hook memberssecured to said plates for interconnecting the saine and holding theplates against pressure in one direction, said members being providedwith overhanging portions engaging the ears on the plates adjacent theone to which the member is attached to limit the relative facialmovement ot the plates.

2. A traction belt for caterpillar type traction engines comprising aplurality 0i separate plates having registering slots on the edgesthereotl forming a Cavity, a pair of lugs formed on said plates adjacentsaid cavity, one on each side thereof and issuing in oppositedirections'froin said plates and each extending into lthe oppositeplate, and menibers secured to said plates having overlapping portionsengaging the lugs of the opposite plates land depending hook port-ionsfor holding the beltin longitudinal alinement extending into said slotsand engaging the Walls of the lslots Ot' the plates opposite.

those t0 which said members are secured.

3. A traction belt for caterpillar type traction engines comprising apli'irality of separate plates each having portions offset from the lineof junction of the plate and being provided with interconnecting slotsadjacent the ends of said plates, and members rigidly secured to theends ot' the plates and having overlapping hooks with dependent portionsextending into said slots.

A traction belt for caterpillar type traci tion engines comprising Yaplurality of separate plates each having portions offset from the .lineof junction of the plate and being provided with interconnect-ing slotsadjacentJ the ends of said plates, and members rigidly secured to theends of the plates and having overlapping hooks with dependent. portions,extending into said slots, said dependent portions being formed withobliquely-disposed adjacent Walls.

5. A traction belt for caterpillar type traction engines'comprising aplurality of separate plates ,wach being provided with interv connectingslotsI adjacent the ends ot said plates, and members rigidly secured tothe plates and having laterally overlapping portions With extensionstherefrom into said slots.

(3. A tractionbelt for caterpillar type traction enginesI bgomprising aplurality of separate plates each being provided with interconnecting'slots adjacent the ends ot' said plates, and members rigidly secured tothe plates and having laterally overlapping portions ivith extensionstherefrom into said slots, said extensions being formed with relativelyobliquely-disposed adjacent ivalls,

In testimony whereof ive afix our signatures in presence of tivowitnesses.

DE lVITT NELSON.

- HUGHC. STEELE.

Vlitnesses H, A. BowMAN, -ALEX LAGAARD.

relatively

